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Friday, April 11, 2008

Lunch Anyone?

It has been such a busy week! I'll have to blog more about it later... BUT, I need help! I have never liked to cook... (Let's just say it was a good thing we lived by my mom during the first years of our marriage!) I would rather make a dessert than an actual dinner. I guess that's because I enjoy eating it more! I do have to give myself credit that since we have moved, I have done really well at fixing breakfast and dinner almost everyday. BUT, now I am fixing THREE meals a day and coming from someone who isn't a cook this is pretty hard for me. I'm actually okay with fixing the meals, it is just the amount of time it takes to do this as well as coming up with healthy nutritious meals for my little boy. I am pretty good at always making sure Zenock gets his FIVE fruits and veggies a day... that's not a problem. I could eat a grilled cheese sandwich everyday, but I think JC and Zenock are starting to get sick of them... That is where you come in!!! I need IDEAS! What do you make your kids for lunch??? I don't want to spend a lot of time fixing a meal in the middle of the day... (I don't mind it at night). I need quick, easy, simple suggestions for lunch ideas! So, for all of you who might read this... leave me a comment with a suggestion! THANKS!

Also, if anyone has any tips on how to actually keep the food on the high chair tray and not in the chair or all over the floor and house, that would be great! :) I now understand why my mom was ALWAYS mopping the floor. We are up to 4 times this week so far!

9 comments:

Do hotdogs count as nutritious? I think they might be moreso than a lot of other things. Plus it's like a minute in the microwave, a minute to slice, and two seconds for ketchup. I don't know if you've introduced Z to the joy of dipping or not, but it's become my best friend. Malia eats anything she can dip.

Malia's favorite other than hotdogs are Pizza dippers. Tortillas with shredded cheese (make them like quesadillas with a quick nuke in the microwave) slice them up and add a small side dish of tomato sauce with a dash of italian seasoning. I usually cook up some corn or green beans because those are Malia's favorite. A variation is to do the sauce directly on the tortilla with shredded cheese over the top and toss in the oven until the cheese melts. I then follow up with some sort of fruit, usually grapefruit because that's a favorite of Malia and me.

It's late and I can't remember more. I'll have a cookbook that is simple quick meals that I'll try and find a copy for you and maybe steal some from Malia's daycare too.

I don't pity you though. I am fighting to find time to spend in my kitchen cooking because I actually like it. I'm a bit jealous.

Galadriel has some good ideas! Thanks! :-) My kids love cheese tacos, as we call them. Flour tortilla with melted cheese, dipped in salsa or gauc, and some fruit & milk. That's their favorite. Hot dogs & mac/cheese comes at a close 2nd. But, seriously, I hate doing lunch too. I will not cook lunch except mac/cheese. We eat a lot of sandwiches, leftoevers or go out (not often now). My kids like school lunches (puke!), so that is okay with me. Now that Joey is eating more, I also make sure he gets his fruits & veggies (Rebecca gave me a few good ideas... you think after 7 kids I should be a pro, but I'm not!). Once they get to be about 4, and all they want is a PB&J, then I let them. Everyday if they want. I even allow Lindsey to fix it herself! As for the food on the floor and chair... won't ever happen. Don't even try! And as for the mopping, LOL!! What is a mop? Do I even own one? Let me think here... nope, don't have a mop. Serious! Kids borrow one sometimes from the mother-in-law, but most of the time they get on their hands & knees and use a rag. They all love doing it, and they all have their own section. Serious! They think it's fun! LOL!!! I know, I have turned my kids crazy! LOL!

check out wholesometoddlerfood.com it has great ideas and even a sample menu for the entire week. It has really come in handy for us and it has great recipes for toddler foods. Like we mix in blended califlour into his scrambled eggs in the morning just help get his fruits/veggies quota for the day. Check it out - it's great!

At walmart here you can buy a HUGE roll of plastic for about 8 bucks. It lasts us probably 2 weeks. just cut it up and lay it under the high chair. To save time I sit down on Sunday night when Jacob is home and just cut them all then. Then I have them in a drawer and can just pull them out when I need them. The plastic is found over by the outdoor and electrical stuff.

Carin,I found your blog from Troy and Teagan's, I hope you don't mind me checking it out. Anyways...I'm not a big fan of taking a lot of time for lunch either. My girl is a picky eater so her staples are pb&j, chicken nuggets and hot dogs. So she pretty much just rotates those three. To try to make it a bit more healthy I give her a side of yogurt, cottage cheese, apple sauce, canned fruit (peaches, pears, or fruit cocktail)cucumber slices, apples slices or something like that to add a bit of a health benefit. Good luck! Feeding these little ones is always a challenge! By the way, your little guy is SO cute!~Tori (McArthur) Tuft

Carin, Wyatt loves to eat hotdogs with mashed potatoes in them with cheese on top. We call them pigs in a blanket, he also loves spaghetti, Roman noodles, cut up grilled cheese, beef stroganoff, and hamburger gravy. Another idea that you might want to try is minute rice with cream of chicken soup mixed in it and then cut up some green beans or carrots. Those are some things that work for us good luck!

Jace's favorite lunch is dino chicken nuggets ( I buy a huge box of them from costco) dipped in either ranch dressing or spaghetti sauce with a side of baby carrots and green beans. It's quick and easy! The chicken nuggets take like 45 seconds in the microwave and I heat up the green beans in the microwave as well. I have actually really enjoyed becoming a cook - I love trying new recipes and I watch the food network sometimes during the day while I clean and cook.